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defense

A defense is an act of protecting one’s own interests. In common law , a defendant may use defenses to prevent or limit liability . A defense can either allege a failure to state a claim , or affirm the existence of a claim and present additional reasons that prevent the plaintiff or prosecutor from prevailing on a cause of action , a demand for relief , or otherwise obtaining the result requested. A defense can be founded on both factual and legal grounds.

See also: Affirmative defense , Complete defense , Partial defense , Excuse , and Justification .

[Last reviewed in September of 2022 by the Wex Definitions Team
]

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